Actor Jessica Marais is a voice in the new Pixar film Planes, which will have its premiere above Sydney in a Qantas plane. Source: News Limited

JESSICA Marais' career is quite literally about to take off.

The Australian premiere of her latest film, Planes, is to be held more than 9000 metres above the ground.

Best known as Rachel in Packed To The Rafters, Marais gives voice to Rochelle, the spirited Aussie racer, in the spin-off of the Pixar film Cars, originally slated for a straight-to-DVD release.

Marais, and 279 other VIP guests, will see the animated Disney adventure for the first time on Saturday aboard a specially-branded B767.

Qantas pilot and No 1 Pixar fan Lisa Norman has volunteered to take the controls.

Her children Grace and Flynn are included in the passenger list.

Jessica Marais during a live recording at Sound Firm studio at Fox Studios.Source: Supplied

Given the amount of time Marais has spent jetsetting between the US and Australia lately, her Australian-accented cameo in Planes - targeted specifically at local audiences - seems rather apt.

"I am pretty used to flying,'' she says.

After wrapping on 50s mob drama Magic City in the US in April, Marais flew straight to Sydney to start work on the ABC movie Carlotta, in which she plays the transgender trailblazer from the age of 16.

Marais had her curves flattened and some dangly bits added to enable her to convincingly play the former Les Girls star before she underwent gender reassignment.

"It's a very big physical transformation,'' said Marais.

Jessica Marais gives voice to Rochelle in Planes.Source: Supplied

"I had short hair and wore no make up at all. We strapped down my breasts and I wore an appendage to make it feel like I really was a boy."

"Carol, or Carlotta would be the first person to say she was never a manly man so it's not like I had to turn myself into The Rock or anything."

Production on Channel 9 series Love Child, also set in Kings Cross in the 1960s, began immediately after.

When that finished shooting last week, Marais made a flying, 24-hour visit to Los Angeles to take meetings.

She says that while there are a number of projects in the wings - film and television - it's too early to talk about any of them just yet.

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